


A Christmas Miracle

by Amaria_Anna_D



Category: Daredevil (TV), The Punisher (TV 2017)
Genre: Christmas Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-24
Updated: 2018-12-24
Packaged: 2019-09-25 23:44:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,267
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17130974
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Amaria_Anna_D/pseuds/Amaria_Anna_D
Summary: Matt and Frank get a big surprise on a quiet Christmas Eve in.





	A Christmas Miracle

**Author's Note:**

  * For [UmiAzuma](https://archiveofourown.org/users/UmiAzuma/gifts).



_“_ _AS LONG AS YOU LOVE ME SO, LET IT SNOW! LET IT SNOW! LET IT SNOW!”_ Frank was belting out Christmas music as loud as his lungs would go in the shower without giving a flying fuck that Fran down the hall was probably shitting herself. He didn’t need any suped up senses to know that in the bedroom, Matt had his head buried beneath the pillows and was cursing Frank a million times over. The trade off of annoying the fuck out of his neighbors was worth it for the mental image in Frank’s brain as he segued into an off-key, ear-slitting rendition of deck the halls. He had only gotten to the first chorus when the door slammed open and bashed into the wall.

“You fucking win, Frank!” Matt spat out as he threw back the shower curtain.

With a chuckle, the former Marine just kept soaping himself as if his balls hadn’t shrunk to tiny ass walnuts with the cold air hitting them. “Hmmm, what did I win, Red? You know, bullet to the brain and all… You’ll have to be more specific.”

“I will let the others handle the Kitchen for tonight and tomorrow.” Fixing Frank with an amazingly accurate glare, Matt stomped out of the bathroom. Frank barely managed to keep his smug comment to himself as he watched Matt’s beautiful, bare ass retreat from the room.

By the time he emerged from the bathroom, Matt was leaning on the breakfast bar eating a cookie out of the dozen or so trays that had come home with him from the office. Grateful Kitchen residents had flooded the law offices of Nelson and Murdock for the past week or so with every kind of Christmas treat imaginable. Usually, Matt used his super nose and steered Frank towards the best ones, but he didn’t seem all that pleased with his husband at the moment, so Frank had to take a gamble. Luckily, the canoli he swiped was on the better side. He’d made the mistake of trying one of Mrs. Callahan’s gingerbread men the day before and nearly broke a tooth.

“So now that I am officially grounded tonight,” Matt hedged, dipping a biscotti into his coffee, “does that mean you’ll join me at mass?”

Frank snorted. “Nice try.”

The rest of the morning was spent fighting the crowds at the grocery store for the ham that Frank decided to bake for dinner and hunting down the last carton of eggnog on the island of Manhattan. It made Frank shake his head to see just how many other last minute shoppers there were in the aisles. The fact that he and Matt hadn’t even had a clue what their plans were until Christmas Eve morning was a huge departure for him. Before Maria had died, Christmases had been better planned than most military operations. The presents were always bought and wrapped long before Thanksgiving, and it hadn’t been uncommon for dozens of Christmas cookies to start appearing in the basement freezer before Halloween rolled around.

Frank returned to the apartment to find Matt stringing popcorn around a potted baby Christmas tree that couldn’t have been more than two feet tall. Aside from a red bow tied to the top and the short popcorn garland, it was naked. The tiny plant was a far cry from the hulking evergreen that sat in the Castles’ living room every December, but it did add just a bit of cheer to the room.

“I swung back to the office and grabbed it,” Matt explained, somehow seeming to sense Frank’s surprise. “I’m not even sure who dropped it off, but I figured… why not?”

“I like it,” Frank said firmly.

Biting his lip, Matt finished twining the last of the popcorn into the branches. “I haven’t decorated a tree since before Dad died. They always had a huge tree at St. Agnes—someone always donated one—and the nuns decorated it for us, but it wasn’t the same. And after that… well, Foggy would string up some lights in the shape of a pot leaf in the dorm over the holidays, but…”

“I could probably still go dig up some lights and ornaments somewhere,” Frank offered.

“Next year,” Matt said with a smile.

This time last year, Frank couldn’t have imagined that he’d wake up Christmas eve and actually feel any kind of holiday spirit at all. He’d been in such a deep, dark place that he’d probably have laughed his ass off at the suggestion. Matt had changed things though. With Matt, Frank actually did have hope that there would be a next Christmas together. It warmed something in his gut that had been dormant for a long time. He couldn’t put exactly what it was into full sentences, but he just knew that Matt felt it too.

In the end, Frank had the bright idea to grab the mini candy canes out of one of the cookie trays. They hung them from the small branches and the tree actually did look kind of nice. Also a plus, Matt could enjoy the sent of pine, peppermint, and popcorn that filled the space. The forgotten ornaments didn’t really matter after all.

Frank kissed the top of Matt’s head as they sipped eggnog by the tree. “Think Santa’s comin’ for you, Red?”

“For me, maybe, and Max definitely. But I have a feeling I know someone else who’s getting coal this year,” he said with a chuckle.

Hearing his name, Max let out a deep whuff from his spot on the couch. The dog had been nosing around the closet for two days, so Frank knew there had to be at least a bone in there for the four legged kid. He also had a sneaking suspicion that there was something for him in there too, despite the fact that they’d both agreed—and lied—that there would be no gifts between them.

After the ham was cooked and eaten that night, the pair decided to put on a movie and relax. Picking the movie ended up being the next hurdle.

“ _Christmas Vacation_?”

“Hmmm… nah, not tonight.”

“ _A Christmas Story_?”

“Nope.”

“ _A Muppet Christmas Carol?_ ” Frank held up the DVD case knowing full well that his boyfriend couldn’t see the cover and wasn’t going to be swayed by the nostalgic image of Gonzo. Still, a guy could hope. It was about the twelfth movie he’d suggested so far, and if Matt didn’t fucking pick already, Frank was about to pull his hair out.

Matt scratched Max’s ears thoughtfully. “I’ve never seen it.”

“Does that mean ‘yes’?” Frank asked even as he was popping it in the player.

When Matt didn’t argue, Frank slipped himself in the narrow gap between the arm of the couch and the two hogging three-quarters of the cushions. The dark haired man scooted his ass back until he was cocooned beneath Frank’s arm and a shit ton of blankets. The only thing Matt seemed willing to share was the bowl of popcorn he balanced on his boyfriend’s knee. The movie didn’t require much narration on Frank’s part, and he was left to simply enjoy the quiet time together.

At some point, “quiet time” had turned into “snooze time.” Frank was awakened by a shake of his shoulder just after midnight. Both Matt and Max had their head’s cocked towards the roof. Frank was about to ask what the hell was going on when he heard a distinctive thud from above.

“What the hell?” he asked softly. He reached for the piece he kept under the couch. Matt’s hand stilled Frank’s before he could pull it out.

“Whoever is up there isn’t carrying a weapon,” Matt said flatly. “He’s big and he’s definitely an older guy.”

Rolling his eyes, Frank wanted to ask Matt how much he’d paid Foggy to climb up on the roof, but the sound of boots moving towards their upper door cut him off. Whoever the hell was up there, stealth definitely wasn’t his thing. Matt crept up the stairs just as silently as their intruder was loud. Frank took a position near the bottom of the stairs with a hunting knife in his grasp. Armed or no, Frank refused to be caught unaware. Just as Matt made it to the top stair, there was a loud laugh that sounded distinctly like the typical “ho ho ho’s” of Santa and then a tinkling of bells. And then nothing… Matt remained in the shadows for a moment and then shook his head like he was trying to get water out of his ears.

“I think he’s gone,” he murmured in awe.

Frank muttered exactly what he thought of a senior citizen climbing up on their roof and then vanishing into the night. He pushed passed Matt and threw open the door.

The rooftop was deserted. Not only was their no sign of “Santa,” but there weren’t even footprints in the even blanked of snow. Frank took a step out into the freezing cold and scanned the area. There was nothing. No one was out there, and it didn’t even look like it was possible someone had ever been out there.

“You pulling some kind of prank on me, Red?” Frank asked as he shut the door behind him.

Matt’s face was too serious for it to have been a prank. “Someone was out there.”

“We gotta be hearing shit. There is no way we heard what we think we heard.”

“But we _did_ hear it,” Matt insisted. “I can’t explain it, but I know someone was on our roof tonight.”

Frank shook his head. “Sleep deprivation or some bullshit. Let’s hit the hay.”

Neither man brought it up again as they got ready for bed and climbed under the covers.

In the morning, Frank woke with his arms wound around Matt’s middle. The bed was warm and comfortable, but there was a certain canine dancing around it that made it hard to sleep. Max’s claws clicked on the floor steadily, and he even nosed at the covers until Frank moved. He pulled on a pair of sweat pants and padded out to the kitchen to put on some coffee to brew while he took Max around the block. He was half way there when he stopped dead in his tracks.

Under the tiny little tree lay three neatly wrapped packages. One had Frank’s name on it in a bold, elegant script, and another had Max’s. The third tag appeared blank at first, but when he got closer, Frank could see little raised bumps.

“No fucking way,” Frank swore, staring at the packages. “Red!”

“What?” Matt asked through a thick yawn from the bedroom.

“Don’t ‘what me’. How the fuck did you get these presents out last night?”

Matt was frowning as he came into the room. “I didn’t.”

Frank scoffed. “You mean to tell me that someone snuck passed you, me, and Max?”

“I… I don’t know,” Matt stammered. “This is one of the strangest things that has ever happened to me.”

Given that aliens had ripped open the sky a few years back, and Matt regularly sparred with undead ninjas, that was saying something.

Frank raked a hand through his hair. “Think we ought to open them?”

Matt paused and sniffed the air. “I don’t think there is anything dangerous in them. Still, you first...”

Rolling his eyes, Frank reached for the package with his name on it. Inside lay a note over top of a tissue covered item:

_Dear Frank,_

_You didn’t make the nice list on your own this year, but Matt and Max have been especially good. Here’s hoping next year they will rub off on you._

_SC_

Frank shuffled off the paper and looked with slack jawed amazement at the Gretzky jersey below. As a kid, Frank had been wild about hockey and wanted nothing more than a real authentic jersey. It was something that his parents hadn’t been able to afford. He hadn’t even thought about that jersey in probably twenty years. He’d certainly never mentioned it to Matt.

“Open yours,” Frank commanded as he fingered the lettering on the back of the jersey.

It seemed like forever while Matt gingerly undid the wrapping and read a note of his own. When he did, he held his jaw tight before reaching inside. He pulled a small bottle out of the box and held it up to his nose. His eyes fluttered, and he almost looked ready to pass out.

“What is it?”

Matt’s smile was tight with emotion. “My Dad’s cologne. I thought I was imagining it this morning. They haven’t made this stuff in years. I thought I’d never smell it again.”

 

Max began sniffing and whining at his own present. Frank untied the bow for him and let the canine tear into the package with his teeth. Inside was a dozen doggie cookies decorated up like regular Christmas trees. Max would have had all of them in his mouth at once, but Frank was quick enough to scoop the majority up before he could. He eyed the intricately painted treats for a moment before he realized he’d seen them when he was walking Max a few days earlier in some designer doggie boutique. It wasn’t the kind of place that neither him nor Matt would go into, and Max certainly hadn’t written a Christmas list.

“How the hell did this stuff get here, Red?” Frank muttered in amazement. It was all so impossible, but here it was…

Matt shrugged. “Maybe Christmas miracles do happen after all.”

 

 

 

 


End file.
